[HGabor]

Folks, just to make things a bit more complicated. Picture this:

Let's say Hartmann hits the Yak-1B and claims a similar looking Yak-9 victory. Yak-1B does not crash, but rather returns to base and lands safely. Pilot unhurt. Soviet mechanics start to repair the plane. After some days and nights, while 'frequently wishing all the best to the mother of the German pilot', they finally give up. Not worth to repair. HQ writes off the plane as 'wear and tear'. ('износ') Not to mention that this is the time of re-arming the regiment with newer Yak models. Yak-9M and/or Yak-3. The old and used Yak-1s are almost scrap metal anyways.

Now: was this a victory, or not? If Hartmann does not hit the plane, it is still in service. But he did not destroy it either. The date of the write-off is completely independent from the date of the battle. No link between the two.

Few examples of wear-and-tear 'losses' of the 5 VA, 331 IAD in late, 1944:

Yak-1B, S/N: 16180 - December 21, 1944
Yak-9T, S/N: 0715378 - December 22, 1944
Yak-1B, S/N: 23160 - December 23, 1944
Yak-1B, S/N: 41177 - December 23, 1944

The majority of these 'losses' was simply age related, I am sure.
But still - a small chance of the prev. described story... Impossible to trace and investigate.

Gabor